Election Affecting Relationships

This Trump debacle is affecting people’s relationships. People are angry and scared and unfortunately, feelings are getting misplaced. The election is hijacking personal bonds.

I can give you several examples. A mother and daughter are facing a split because the daughter is so upset that her mother voted for Trump. Someone else lost several friends because she can’t bear to communicate with them on Facebook. She even surprised herself with how harshly she had spoken to them. Another person is ignoring and not calling family members. A woman is not attending Thanksgiving because she knows she will get emotional when her Christian family acts happy about the election. A man gets into heated arguments with his girlfriend because they are responding differently to the election aftermath.

We need to back up and think about this. Our friends and family are not the enemy. Trump is the catastrophe. We cannot give him the power to hurt our relationships. Much as it is tempting to get into conflicts, let’s ask ourselves whether we are inflicting our rage and pain on the wrong people. Let’s remember that our friends and family that support Trump have been duped. He is a masterful con man.

I’m not saying we have to engage necessarily. We need to honor our feelings and provide self-care first of all. If the issues are too “hot,” it’s ok to take some space. After all, we all need healing. Interacting with certain people might just be too difficult. However, instead of just ignoring friends and family, we might explain that we need a little space to heal. Don’t blame them. And when we do spend time with them, let’s remember to hold high the value of our relationships. They are much more important than differences caused by this election disaster.

Trump already has too much power. Lets not give him any more. Let’s show our resistance by preserving our personal lives and cherishing those we love.